“The Honda engineering team wanted something different from the Insight. They wanted a hybrid that was appealing to drive. Fortunately they already had a small car that met that criteria: the Fit. So, naturally, the important dynamic bits of the Fit form the basis of the Insight. The entire front structure of the Insight is in fact common to the Fit. Compared to the Fit, the rear axle has been moved back two inches and the roof has dropped 3.8 inches. Inside, the roof sits two inches closer to the front seat and three inches closer to the rear. That means that occupants in the Insight sit lower to the ground and have a cozier feeling than in the Fit, but the new Insight actually ends up feeling sportier than either the Fit or Prius.” Oh, and ABG achieved a claimed 63.4 mpg.
“After lunch, I headed out to try the efficiency loop. The loop consisted of mostly stop and go driving over varied terrain (up and down hills) with speed limits ranging from 25-55 mph in and around Carefree, Arizona. I stuck to the speed limits and kept a light foot on the throttle and brake pedals. With the speedometer up above the steering wheel, the colored background was easily visible in my peripheral vision. Glancing down to the main efficiency indicator graph helped to optimize my driving style. With all the feedback I was able to achieve 62.2 mpg over the 16-mile loop. A second attempt later in the afternoon, yielded an even better 63.4 mpg.”
That dash is about on par with the Subaru below in terms of totally unnecessary ugliness. Now it isn’t enough that your car is hideous to look at from the outside, one needs a perpetual reminder of their acute lack of style/taste while at the wheel.
“No officer I have no idea how fast I was going, the dash is too hideous to look at”
We’re accelerating towards a future of grotesque cars which are horrible to drive.
The projected 40/43 mpg EPA numbers a bit lower than I had expected, but then this Insight has less electric capacity than even the Civic hybrid. It’s quite “mild”. Nevertheless, if it drives well, and is cheap enough ($18,500), it may sell well enough for Honda.
Whats the point of the ‘light’ foot on acceleration and braking?
What the hell does that mean…?
Was the tester trying to set MPG records?
If so,
Test not worth a ……….
And the dash is hideous!
On the 40/43 mpg EPA numbers, I suspect Honda is just managing expectations and that it will come in just above the 40/45 of the current hybrid Civic.
The last thing they’d want is for the test results to come in below Honda’s announced estimate.
I love it when people buy a $30,000 car to save 5 MPG’s. That is the problem with the Prius and the Volt, they are just too expensive. The price of a car is just as important to know the true cost per mile. If I want to save money I will just buy an Accent for 12 grand and the remaining $18,000 will buy a lot of gas. Plus I won’t have to worry about battery technology going bad. That said if they can sell it for 18,500 then I think this might be the first hybrid that makes sense to buy.
Yep, that’s why I bought a five year old Civic hybrid for $6300.
Where are the cup holders???
There aren’t even any in the door like the Accord. What is going on here?
– “I will just buy an Accent for 12 grand and the remaining $28,000”
You mean remaining $18,000?
-at least Honda made the air vents for the passenger a different color. The early photos made the interior look worse.
If the car gets better gas mileage than the Civic why would anyone buy the Civic hybrid They’re going to make it worse or are they’re going to sell this car as the replacement for the Civic hybrid?
Anyone else notice the coupe concept of this!
Apparently a “honda insider” said it would have insane mileage, 71 mpg in theory.
Sorry for the typo. It is fixed.
law stud: There are two cupholders in front of the gear shifter and bottle holders in each of the front doors.
Honda need to stop using the word “Hydrid” too loosely. The Honda Civic Hydrid is not a true hydrid, it a simi hydrid, where as a Prius is a true hydrid system. To be competitive Honda make the Insight which is a true hydrid “full hydrid” system.
Steven Lang :
January 11th, 2009 at 3:20 pm
Yep, that’s why I bought a five year old Civic hybrid for $6300.
Big mistake. Cells replacement recommanded at 150,000 miles. at a cost of over $6,000 good luck.
Don’t know where you’re getting your info, AdCar, but there is no specified replacement interval for the battery packs in Honda’s hybrid products.
Maybe you’re confusing that with the warranty period? In CARB states, the batteries and hybrid system are guaranteed for 150,000 miles, but there’s no replacement called for at that point if they’re still operating properly.
Also, the price is about $1,800, not $6,000. Or, in other terms, about the cost of an automatic transmission replacement in most conventional cars.
Try $500 for me. I checked that out from a friend of mine in the ‘automotive reycling’ business before I got it.
In the end it was the dash that kept me away from Civic.
Sorry Honda, for both of us.
Well fellas, I like the car, even with the Star Trek “new Enterprise” dashboard.
Barring an unexpected event, I plan to keep my nearly five-year-old Prius another three years.
And as for the comments y’all are making about paying $30,000 for a vehicle to save 5 MPG’s. Not all of us hybrid buyers made our purchases to save 5 MPG.
We’re all human, and we’re all unique. There are many VALID reasons for buying the cars we buy. Even if we “just want to”, that also is a valid reason. If you disagree with that, then you may not be the gearhead you say you are!
However, some of my reasons for this purchase were somewhat more practical, which are no less valid. My Prius is bigger than my old car. I needed cargo carrying capacity, and the Prius gives me that. I wanted to carry people (plural) in comfort. I wanted to have a car that wouldn’t need a lot of service, so I finally got wise and bought myself my second “new-car-that-wasn’t-a-GM”. I just plain wanted a new car with all the gizmos.
I wanted all of that, AND I wanted to burn less gas. Note: I did not say “save money.” I did not say “get higher MPG’s”, although this is partly what it’s about. I’m not a greenie; I do NOT attend the Church of the Global Warming Fearmongering. No, I just wanted to keep enjoying driving and hauling shit and doing more while burning less gas.
I got my money’s worth.
At least until the government finally takes it all to pay for stuff I couldn’t care less about, I am STILL the final authority on MY MONEY and what it’s worth.
So look before you slam. What you value less, another person may value more. More or less. ;)
A lot of you are forgetting one of the main attractions of this car, and the Fit, as well – the VIN which begins with the coveted “J”.
ZoomZoom….I think this is the one hybrid announcement that won’t bring out a flood of hate for your car. In fact I’d say that Honda has just given you reason to tell us to shove it and vote with our wallets when we don’t like the Prius.
Personally, I’m really happy about this, especially the price.
Are we channelling the last-generation Bonneville’s dash for a reason?